1. Technical Field
This invention generally relates to a system for delivering a catalyst into a flame zone of a combustion reaction, such as a fuel combustion chamber. More specifically, embodiments of the invention include a catalyst reservoir which produces an catalyst-containing aerosol, vapor or sparging gas and a catalyst transport system to transport the catalyst to the flame zone. Specific embodiments of the invention may include a vacuum source to draw the catalyst-containing gas to the flame zone and an enrichment circuit to cause an increase in the amount of catalyst being drawn to the flame zone when increased catalyst enrichment is required.
2. Background Art
Sparging gas, catalyst vapors and aerosols have been used in the combustion reaction art to increase the energy output of fuel combustion systems. In conventional sparging gas delivery systems, a vacuum is created above a pool of liquid in a receptacle to cause atmospheric air to be drawn into the receptacle at a location below the surface of the liquid. Generally, the liquid in a conventional system includes a carrier liquid with an oil or other catalyst floating on top of the carrier or, more recently, a catalyst solution including a base carrier and a soluble catalyst. The vacuum created above the liquid causes bubbles to rise through the liquid and into the air above the liquid with a portion of the liquid adhering to the surface of the bubbles. At some point above the surface of the liquid, the bubbles burst and a portion of the catalyst which was on the surface of the bubbles remains in the air above the liquid. This process is commonly called sparging and the resulting catalyst-containing gas is called xe2x80x9csparging gas.xe2x80x9d Tiny particles of catalyst are thereby drawn away in sparging gas form by the vacuum and supplied into the induction air of a combustion system to affect the combustion reaction.
In conventional sparging processes, however, the catalyst receptacles are configured such that the bubbles contact solid barriers as they rise to the top of the liquid. This contact reduces the amount of liquid that can adhere to the surface of the bubble. Conventional systems also have a sparging gas outlet immediately above the bursting bubbles. With this arrangement, the catalyst solution from the bursting bubbles may directly splash into the sparging gas outlet and travel to the flame zone in liquid form rather than as a sparging gas, quickly consuming the catalyst solution at an uncontrolled rate. This unnecessary and uncontrolled consumption causes the system to become ineffective and inefficient. Another undesirable aspect of conventional delivery systems is that if, instead of the negative pressure of a vacuum, positive pressure occurs in the receptacle above the liquid, the liquid may be forced through the air inlet and overflow from the system. This phenomenon is commonly called percolation. One specific limitation of conventional sparging gas catalyst delivery systems is that the catalyst delivery rate of the system is either fixed or proportional to the vacuum rate of the combustion system and cannot be automatically enriched with increased demand.
The present invention relates to a liquid catalyst delivery system which includes a liquid catalyst receptacle and a catalyst transport system for delivering a sparging gas containing catalyst to a flame zone of a combustion reaction. Embodiments of the invention include an air inlet which releases air into a catalyst receptacle such that bubbles released from the air inlet port do not contact a solid surface as they pass through the catalyst solution, a non-restrictive check valve on the air inlet, and a chamber adjacent to the main body of the catalyst receptacle, the chamber having an opening with a diameter smaller than the diameter of the body of the chamber to assist in passing only the sparging gas to the flame zone. Reinforcing structural elements which assist in mounting the receptacle to a body are also included.
Embodiments of the catalyst transport system may be as simple as a simple tube, or more complex, including a pump, controllers, alarms, sensors and an enrichment circuit. Pumps may be continuous or controlled by controllers in response to the needs of the combustion process. The enrichment circuit may also be continuous, have predetermined thresholds for providing added catalyst to the system, or may be controlled by controllers in response to the needs of the combustion process. Alarms and timing circuits may be used to convey information regarding the process, the system, or sensors associated with the system. A remote indicator of the need to replenish contents of the catalyst receptacle, or components of those compounds may also be provided to the system. A vibration source may be added by mounting the receptacle to a mounting plate in association with the vibration source, such as the pump. Vibration of the environment may similarly be dampened by mounting the receptacle in a configuration buffered from the environment, such as on cushioned mounts.
The foregoing and other features and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the following more detailed description of the particular embodiments of the invention, as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.